At least ten bears put down in Kimberley in last month

The last time the Bulletin reported on bear activity in Kimberley on September 24, four bears had been put down since the beginning of the month.

That number has now risen to at least ten, says Shauna McInnis of East Kootenay Wildlife Aware.

“They are just everywhere,” McInnis said. “There’s no centre of activity. Kimberley is a big long line and bears are getting into trouble everywhere.”

The main problems are the usual suspects — unpicked fruit trees and available garbage.

“The bears are getting what they can,” she said. “They are getting in all sorts of trouble and doing property damage to fences and sheds. They are fairly aggressive about going back to properties where they’ve found food before.”

It is an unusually bad year for bear activity throughout the East Kootenay, brought about by an early berry crop which also petered out early. This, says McInnis, resulted in bears coming into town early at the beginning of September.

If a bear doesn’t find attractants on your property, he will move on. Pick your fruit trees and secure your garbage. At this time of year, an extra weekly trip to the transfer station between garbage pick ups may not be a bad idea.